A web composed of fibrous material, e.g. woven, knitted or pressed (nonwoven) fiber or filament webs, can be processed to yield a variety of end products depending upon the nature of the processing, the starting materials used and the various steps with which the web is treated. These steps may include application of various flowable materials for preparation of the web, coating or conditioning of the web, dyeing or printing of the web and finishing of the web. The steps include usually the application of the liquid or flowable substance alone or in combination with other substances with or without intervening pressing to promote deep impregnation and with or without a squeezing step whereby excess liquid may be removed to a residual moisture content.
These steps have required an appropriate apparatus for each step and it is recognized that it is desirable to carry out the steps without significant loss of time or processing materials in various combinations.